– Vintage Car Rally for Drug-Free Karnataka Inaugurated
– ₹300 Crore Worth of Narcotics Seized in the Last Two Years
Bengaluru, December 7: Home Minister Dr. G. Parameshwara announced that the government and police have declared war against drug peddlers and users to free the state from addiction, asserting that they will not rest until this goal is achieved.
He was speaking after inaugurating the Vintage Car Rally for Drug-Free Karnataka Awareness Campaign, organized by Paul John Resorts and Hotels in collaboration with the Bengaluru City Police and the Federation of Historic Vehicles of India (FHVI) on Sunday.
“Not just Karnataka, but societies across the world are grappling with drug addiction. Those who support narcotics are not human; they play with people’s lives, destroying their future and health. Recognizing this, our government had earlier announced its resolve to make Karnataka a drug-addiction-free state,” he stated.
“The state becoming drug-free does not happen simply by declaration. We have started a war against it. The government and police are fighting this war, and as a result, drugs worth over ₹300 Crore have been seized in the last year, and thousands of people have been arrested, with several still incarcerated. It is unfortunate that even those who come from abroad for education are involved in such criminal activities,” Dr. Parameshwara said.
The Minister highlighted the shocking extent of the problem: “Drug traffickers have descended to such low levels that they are going to schools and distributing drugs to children for free, often disguised as chocolates, making them addicts. To curb this, the police are taking strict action.”
The Minister appealed to the student community and the youth, including IT graduates, to stay away from the use of narcotics.
The event was attended by Director General of Police Dr. M.S. Saleem, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh, Dr. Raviprakash from the Federation of Historical Vehicle India, film actor Madan Patel, and others.
The attractive procession of vintage cars set off from Vidhana Soudha and proceeded to the Big Banyan Vineyard and Resort. Thousands of people lined the roadsides to watch the rally.